Königin im Liederreich: Anne Sofie von Otter

I must begin this post with an apology, Gentle Readers: I was not the ideal audience member for Anne Sofie von Otter's Saturday night recital.  I thought I was prepared: I was in a good humor, well- but not overfed, and feeling prepared to be attentive and discerning.  I was bowled over.  So inadequate, indeed, was my own reception, that I debated long about blogging this at all; but, confound it, I paid a real-people price for a good ticket because I decided that I couldn't forgive myself for not going to this recital, and I went, and I listened, and I was moved, and I'm going to record it.  Badly.  This was the video, found on Carnegie Hall's website, that contributed significantly to my decision.  If this gorgeous, charming woman had taken ages putting together a recital, it would be positively discourteous not to go.  And what might I be missing if I did?

Winterweihe: Renée Fleming at Carnegie Hall

The United States Postal Service has its unofficial credo to motivate it; opera fans have... well, what makes them opera fans.  Snow descending on New York City and making me very relieved to be safely home via a still-functioning subway could not deter the diva-devotees who packed Carnegie Hall for Renée Fleming's recital.  I have to confess that I couldn't call myself a diva-devotee, but I was not about to miss a program of Schoenberg, Zemlinsky, Korngold, R. Strauss, and a new Brad Mehldau cycle with Rilke texts (detailed program notes here.)  I'll state my biggest reservation at the outset: I kept losing Fleming's consonants, and I found this both distressing and frustrating.  Carnegie Hall generously provided their usual texts and translations, but still.  I don't know whether this is an issue of general Textdeutlichkeit, or a peculiarity of phrasing, because I experienced a shadow of the same problem with the English-language songs.  Fortunately, this did not vitiate Fleming's ability to communicate musically, and I was impressed both by the bold program, and by Fleming's commitment to the emotional arc of the selections.